Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an estimate of the number of pensioners in (a) Coventry North East constituency and (b) Coventry are eligible for pension credit but do not claim it; and what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that all pensioners in those areas receive their full entitlement to pension credit.
Answered by Guy Opperman
There are currently some 2,980 recipients of Pension Credit in Coventry North East and 7,390 Pension Credit recipients in Coventry.
We have already undertaken a range of actions to raise awareness of Pension Credit and increase take-up. Initial internal management information suggests that new claims for Pension Credit in the 12 months to December 2021 were around 30% higher compared to the 12 months to December 2019.
Earlier this year, we directly targeted over 11 million pensioners with information about Pension Credit and the additional support it can provide in the leaflet accompanying their annual up-rating notification.
However, it is more important now than ever before that we ensure all eligible pensioners claim the vital financial help which Pension Credit provides. That’s why on 3 April we launched a new Pension Credit awareness campaign. We are promoting Pension Credit in a variety of ways, including on social media – with advertising targeted both at potential recipients as well as their friends and family and also in key locations for the elderly, such as post offices and GP waiting rooms.
I have written to the editors of regional newspapers across England, Scotland and Wales calling on readers to check if they could be eligible and make a claim. This was done on repeat occasions in 2021. I have also written to all MPs, urging them to lend the campaign their support. MPs are well placed to promote Pension Credit to their older constituents and many already do so.
On 6 June there will be a further roundtable meeting with some stakeholders, who have reach and expertise, to identify other practical initiatives to encourage eligible pensioners to claim.
On 15 June, there will be another Pension Credit awareness media day of action with broadcasters, newspapers and other partners encouraged to reach out to pensioners to promote Pension Credit through their channels. We will also extend the campaign to include advertising in regional and national newspapers. This event was a success in 2021.
We know that one of the best ways to reach eligible customers is through trusted stakeholders working in the community. We will be producing and distributing leaflets and posters which can be used across local communities, and we will also be updating our digital toolkit with information and resources that any stakeholder can use to help promote Pension Credit.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment her Department has made of trends in the level of child poverty in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England.
Answered by David Rutley
Latest statistics for the levels of children who are in low income in Coventry North East constituency and Coventry are published in “Children in Low Income Families”, and can be found at: Children in low income families: local area statistics 2014 to2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab).
National statistics on the number and percentage of children in low income are published annually in the “Households Below Average Income” publication, and can be found at: Households below average income: for financial years ending 1995 to 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Due to methodological differences, the figures in these two publications are not comparable.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the impact of the increases in the cost of living on levels of foodbank use in (a) Coventry North East constituency and (b) Coventry.
Answered by David Rutley
No assessment has been made.
Foodbanks are independent, charitable organisations and the Department for Work and Pensions does not have any role in their operation. There is no consistent and accurate measure of food bank usage at a constituency or national level.
We understand the data limitations in this area, and therefore from April 2021 we introduced a set of questions into the Family Resources Survey (FRS) to measure and track food bank usage. The first results of these questions are due to be published in March 2023 subject to usual quality assurance.
We recognise the pressures on the cost of living and we are doing what we can to help, including spending £22 billion across the next financial year to support people. This includes the recently announced package of support to help households with rising energy bills, worth £9.1 billion.
Also included in this is an additional £500 million to help households (01 April – 30 September 2022) with the cost of essentials, on top of what we have already provided since October 2021, bringing the total funding for this support to £1 billion.
In England, £421 million will be provided to extend the existing Household Support Fund, at least a third of the extension funding (£140m) will be spent on pensioners and at least another third (£140m) will be spent on families with children.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of Carers Allowance payments to support unpaid carers meet the increased costs of living.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Government recognises people are facing pressures with the cost of living which is why we are providing support worth over £22 billion across this financial year and next.
On carers specifically, the Government continues to provide financial support to unpaid carers through Carer’s Allowance, the Carer Element in Universal Credit and through other benefits.
Real terms expenditure on Carer’s Allowance is forecast to be £3.1bn in 2021/22 and between 2021/22 and 2026/27 is forecast to increase by two-fifths (around £1.3 billion). By 2026/27, the Government is forecast to spend just under £4.4 billion a year on Carer’s Allowance.
The weekly rate of Carer’s Allowance will increase to £69.70 in April 2022. This means that since 2010 it will have increased from £53.90 to £69.70 a week, providing an additional £800 a year for carers through Carer’s Allowance.
The Government has chosen to focus extra support on those carers who need it most. Around 360,000 carer households on Universal Credit can receive an additional £1,965 a year through the Carer Element. This amount will increase from April 2022.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to help support disabled people in (a) Coventry North East constituency and (b) Coventry meet the increased costs of living.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Government is making sure that we continue to deliver the financial support that people need. In 2022/23 we estimate that we will spend over £63bn on benefits to support disabled people and people with health conditions in GB.
The Government is also providing support worth over £22 billion this financial year and next to help families with the cost of living. We have cut the Universal Credit taper to make sure work pays. We are freezing alcohol and fuel duties to keep costs down and providing targeted support to help households with the cost of essentials.
In addition to this, the Energy Bills Rebate will provide around 28 million households with an upfront discount on their bills worth £200.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of trends in the level of long-term youth unemployment in (a) Coventry North East constituency and (b) Coventry; and what (i) financial and (ii) other steps she is taking to tackle long-term youth unemployment in those areas.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
The sample size of the Annual Population Survey is too small to provide robust estimates of the trends in long-term youth unemployed in the areas identified.
DWP offers significant support to unemployed people across Coventry to access employment opportunities through our network of Jobcentres. Our Work Coaches provide support on finding a job, help with retraining or skills advice, CV, job applications and access to the new vacancies, as well as signposting to our Jobhelp website.
The Youth Hub in Coventry continues to provide outreach support, which can be accessed by young people in Coventry at Coventry Jobshop in the City Centre. We have also partnered with employers in the Coventry area to deliver Sector Based Work Academy Programmes open to all age groups and length of unemployment. For longer term support we work with many local training providers and the Coventry City Council Jobshop to fill ‘Building Better Opportunities’ programmes for the longer term unemployed and those further from the labour market.
DWP is also currently working with West Midland Combined Authority to promote and fill Commonwealth Games 2022 opportunities, matching young people to employers linked to hospitality, security, customer service and the sports industry across the local area.
The Kickstart Scheme provided grant funded, six-month jobs with participating employers for 16-24 year olds on Universal Credit and at risk of long-term unemployment. As of the 31st January 2022, in Great Britain over 130,000 Kickstart jobs have been started by young people and over 235,000 jobs have been made available for young people to apply to through the scheme. More recent statistics will be published in due course.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that women going through the menopause in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England are supported in their workplaces.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
Too many women feel forced either to leave work, reduce their hours, or take a step back in their careers, because of the menopause. That is why I asked the 50+ roundtable of employer organisations to look at menopause and employment, emphasising the importance of the provision of support by employers. An independent report is now published which Government will respond to.
The Women’s Health Strategy will have menopause as a priority, and the UK wide Menopause task force will take a holistic approach to menopause care from healthcare to workplace support and education, enabling national coverage which will provide benefits at a local level.
Our 37 district 50PLUS Champions provide a local response, reinforcing Jobcentre Plus’s commitment to supporting over 50s claimants find and stay in work by sharing the benefits of employing over 50s to employers. Our champions utilise their knowledge and local links to support Work Coaches and employers to understand the characteristics of our customers and the issues that may affect them such as the impact of the menopause, helping them retain women’s skills and expertise.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to increase pension credit take-up in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The latest Pension Credit take-up statistics are due for publication on 24 February. These will cover the financial year 2019/20. Due to the sample size used to estimate Pension Credit take-up statistics, figures cannot be broken down to a constituency level.
The Department has undertaken a range of actions to raise awareness of Pension Credit, encourage pensioners to check their eligibility, and to make a claim. This has included a Pension Credit media day of action in June, working with stakeholders such as the BBC and Age UK.
Our initial internal management information suggests new claims for Pension Credit in the past twelve months to December 2021 were around 136,000, representing an increase of around 30% compared to the 12 months to December 2019 when they were around 105,000. It also suggests that we have been receiving consistently high volumes of claims over recent months, at around 3,300 per week.
This management information has not been subjected to the usual standard of quality assurance associated with official statistics but are provided here in the interests of transparency.
The impact of these claim volumes on numbers of successful awards and on Pension Credit take-up will take longer to establish given the usual cycle involved in producing those statistics
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of people affected by administrative errors made by her Department which led to the overpayment of benefits in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by David Rutley
The Department does not hold Official Error data, or details of subsequent hardships requests for a reduction in the rate of repayment, by geographical area.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of people affected by administrative errors made by her Department which led to financial hardship for claimants in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by David Rutley
The Department does not hold Official Error data, or details of subsequent hardships requests for a reduction in the rate of repayment, by geographical area.